Exile
by Yami Hime Hikari
Summary: //3 of 3\\ Crystal Tokyo story. A Guardian of the Senshi has destroyed five cities near the palace and has been exiled. Now, no one knows where she is or anything about her. This exile has shattered the unity of the Senshi and their world. What happened?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Trust me, you would _know_ if I owned anyone but the Guardians and Yami. Those are my only property.

**Chapter One**

_She sat upon her throne, staring down at the woman whose power all but smothered five destroyed cities, all connecting._

_"I sentence you to permanent exile," she announced, still watching the woman who knelt before her, flanked by two members of the Palace Guard. "I only show this much leniency toward you because of the service you have offered my court and me since my mother's reign. However, if you ever return to this Solar System, unless bound by physical or magical means, the magic that engraved your oaths into your wrists shall kill you."_

_The woman at her feet nodded her head once, accepting her punishment even as fresh tears ran down her cheeks._

_The two guards hauled her to her feet, intending to escort her to the outside world, but she broke away from them and began to glow a deep violet nearly black. After a few moments of frozen silence, all present heard the fabric of space rip. It was not like ripping a piece of cloth, but a greatly intensified nails-on-chalkboard sound._

_The prisoner looked up, seeing the rip just above her head, shaped like a cat's claw marks. Through it she could see the land upon which she had chosen to spend the rest of her life._

_Jumping upward, the warrior vanished through the portal and it rolled up behind her as everyone returned to life and rushed forward._

_"Good luck rebuilding those cities, Serenity," a voice spoke in the Queen's ear. "One of your most trusted warriors turned traitor? And one of the most powerful ones, at that? No one will want to go near those five wrecks for fear of being destroyed themselves." Cruel laughter echoed throughout the hall, but only the Queen seemed able to hear it._

Queen Serenity of Earth and the Moon Kingdom jerked awake, heart pounding harder than it had in any battle she'd taken part in but the one against Chaos.

"Kuso…" she whispered to herself, sitting up and taking comfort in the sight of her husband lying peacefully next to her in bed. "Why won't that dream _go away_?"

It was the same thing nearly every night for the past year: she would fall asleep, and the next thing she knew, the odango-haired Queen was back in her Throne Room as she exiled one of her closest friends.

The worst thing was that damn voice at the end. It had not happened during the actual event, but Serenity couldn't help but feel that it was the voice of someone she knew very well.

"Saturn's going to kill me when she gets back," the woman realized. Sailor Saturn and her sister had become, once again, extremely close to each other over the years since they met as Hotaru and Hikari. Currently, the Senshi of Destruction was out on a scouting mission and due to return in a few weeks and had been gone for nearly two years. The changes involving her twin that had taken place in her absence were _not_ going to be appreciated.

"How much of the castle are we going to have to rebuild?" she muttered to herself, wondering at the extent of her Senshi's rage when the events were discovered.

"What's the matter?" a deep voice asked sleepily next to her ear.

"Just a nightmare," Serenity sighed, leaning into her husband's embrace. "I love you more than anything, Endymion. You know that, right?"

"I love you too," the King murmured into her ear, giving her a kiss. "Now we've got to get up early, so let's go back to sleep, okay?"

With a worried sigh, Serenity gave in and was soon asleep.

Her King was not.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

"Are you _sure_ you need me for this?" a dark-haired woman joked as she helped two brawny young men lift a log and slide it into place on its sling to be carried to the top of the half-built mansion.

"Keeps you occupied, doesn't it?" one of them replied.

"I've enough to hold my mind," the woman sighed, rolling her shoulders back to loosen the muscles.

A wailing cry split the air. "There she is now. I'll see you later, Thomas," she called over her shoulder as she headed back into the finished portion of the building where her three-month-old daughter was.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

"What do you _mean_, Titan isn't here?" a dangerous voice demanded softly. The mere volume of the woman's voice spoke for itself more than shouting or physical harm might have. Though from the look in the Senshi's eyes and her grip on the deadliest weapon ever in existence, physical harm was not too far away.

"I—I mean—Queen, your sister hasn't been here in over a year! I don't know where she went! But she's not here right now!" the near-hysterical servant cried. The Senshi of Death and Healing had come out of her sister's rooms, seen him, and proceeded to question him about where the Princess of Dosei might be.

"Titan wouldn't leave for so long—let alone leave Crystal Tokyo—without telling me at least that she wouldn't be here when I got back. Are you _sure_ you have not the slightest idea where my sister may be?" Saturn had gotten her temper under control and now spoke politely, if a bit tersely.

"I have none," the servant babbled quickly and frantically. "The High Queen is in her wing if you wish to ask her. I believe she is awaiting your return, my Queen."

With a sigh, Saturn nodded. The servant made as though to scurry away, and she grabbed his arm. He paled greatly.

"My apologies for keeping you from your work and for frightening you, good sir," she said softly. "I meant you no harm. I am merely protective and worry for my sister. It is unlike her to leave for long without giving me notice."

The man nodded in a frenzy and, once released, quickly scurried out of sight.

Muttering curses and threats under her breath, the Senshi of Destruction headed to give her report to her Queen… and ask some questions of her own.

Heaven help Serenity if the answers weren't satisfactory.

If they weren't, then once again, her leader would learn what it meant to anger a Warrior of Destruction.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

**AN:** So? What'dya think? I know, I know… I really should be working on "Guardians" and "Guardians' Return," but my brain's shot from working on those right now—also on my homework—, and since chapters aren't done, I randomly came up with this. But you must be warned: though this has a plot and point, life has gotten me in a stranglehold since the beginning of last month and updates will be _very_ sporadic. Please bear with me and tell me what you think. Feel free to nag me to update—on any of my stories.

**QUESTIONS:**

What's your opinion? Confused on anything?

Who in the world is Kousagi? She's mentioned in a lot of fanfics, but I don't know who she is.

How can I find information on her?


	2. Chapter 2

**AN:** Yep, 'nother chapter. Why isn't anyone reviewing this? I mean, looking on the Stats page, I know there are people who've clicked on the link... So why won't anyone review? I _need_ help with this.

**Disclaimer:** Yami and Guardians. That's it. All I own. Doesn't that mean you can't sue me now?

**Chapter Two**

_It's been three weeks now,_ Serenity sighed wearily to herself. I wonder how much longer it'll be before we can have our own rooms again?

Currently, all the Senshi—excluding Pluto and Saturn—and their Guardians—Charon included— were sleeping in one large room with their Queen and King.

Saturn, in her bountiful rage, had decided to revert _all_ the Royal apartments back to singular atoms floating around the Solar System. Yep, not just Serenity and Endymion's rooms, but the Senshi's and Guardians's also. She did not include her own rooms or those of her sister, but they were sealed very tightly shut and no one wanted to try those wards. At least they gave the architects something to work off of.

"I want my own rooms back!" Venus wailed, Mars having stepped on her hand. Those high heels _hurt_.

"Well, you'll have to talk to Saturn about that!" Mars snapped back. "After all, _she_ was the one who pulled them down!"

"_Please_ don't tell me you're going to seriously consider it," Uranus drawled. "Considering the shape she's in right now, if you ask her to create something; she'll create a plaque, attach you to it, and you'll be mounted to the wall."

"Look at it this way," Neptune put in helpfully. "We can stay up as late as we want, talking. Think of it as a sleep-over."

"Dear Kami-sama help me, if that's what this is, then _why_ won't her parents come pick her up and leave?" Endymion muttered under his breath. It was hard being in the only man in a room full of fifteen girls for over a month. PMS needed to be damned to hell—and _stay_ there. These girls turned _crazy_ at that time of the month! And the lack of privacy in this room!

Uranus snorted. "Just be glad no weapons have been pulled yet, sire," she murmured to him, obviously having heard. "In any case, we all _would_, except that the annual banquet's coming up. We _have_ to be here the preceding and subsequent month, remember?"

Muttering curses under her breath, Sailor Mars left the cramped room to head for the sacred fire near the palace. Maybe there she'd be at peace. Phobos and Deimos reverted back to crows and followed her.

"Why are we being punished for delivering justice almost two years ago?" Serenity asked the air, loud enough to be heard by the others.

The Guardians stiffened slightly, keeping their mouths shut. Titan was a _very_ sensitive subject for them, and they, if possible, felt even more betrayed than Serenity did at their comrade's senseless actions.

Most of the Senshi followed suit, not knowing what to say, or knowing of the attacks that would come her way if she voiced her opinions.

"You have to remember, Serenity," Neptune reminded her softly, "of Saturn's relationship with Titan. She's always been overprotective when it came to her little sister. Also, I don't believe she accepts that Titan would intentionally destroy five large cities for any reason, let alone none. But when you consider the control that girl has, it is impossible to conceive of a reason for such destruction. Saturn most likely believes that you banished Titan for no reason, without a true trial. I don't believe she will easily forgive or forget an offense like that. When she's angry, Saturn's response is to strike at those nearest or at fault. She's always been like that. Don't worry; my daughter should calm down within a month."

"She _our_ daughter," Uranus corrected. Neptune nodded, smiling slightly and leaning against her lover. "And I think she'll be angry for a _lot_ longer than a month," the Wind Senshi added. "I would be if I was in her place and Neptune in Titan's."

"But you're not," Venus protested. "So let's wait a month before we go see Saturn, okay? Then she'll be all happy and sorry for taking our rooms away from us."

_Happy? No, she won't be _happy_ at all,_ Endymion thought. _She would've killed us if not for the consequences._ He remembered the scene in his nightmares…

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

_"Thank you for your report, Saturn," Serenity said warmly as she dismissed her soldier._

_"I'd like to ask you a question before I leave, your Majesties," Saturn said slowly. "It is quite important." Endymion felt dread settle heavily into his gut and begin to claw at his insides._

_Serenity, still ditzy and oblivious at times, answered, "Sure, ask away, Saturn."_

_"Where's Titan?" Saturn's voice was deadly cold and her fingers tightened upon her Silence Glaive._

We should really ban her from carrying it around, _he thought frantically, staring at the weapon._

_"We… I…" Serenity groped for words, but her husband and King was unable to bail her out. The only thing he feared more than losing his wife and daughter was Saturn and Titan. Either one terrified him, actually. Especially when they were angry._

_"I'm sorry, Saturn," the blonde finally rushed out as th Silent Senshi's face grew even more stony and cold. "But I didn't have a choice! She destroyed _five cities!_ I couldn't just say, 'oh, it doesn't matter, you can stay.' My people would lose their trust in me, and how would it look, anyway? I _had_ to exile her!"_

_Deathly silence fell._

_"You _had_ to exile my sister?" Saturn said quietly. "You _had_ to? No, you didn't Serenity. 'How would it look?' Quite honestly, I don't give a damn. You _used_ to do what your heart told you, and not care what the others thought. Has ruling really made you so heartless that you'll do whatever it takes for a good public image? Exiling a friend and one of the backbones of your defense? You had a choice, Queen. As far as I'm concerned, you made the wrong one."_

_Then, as the High Queen grew pale and started sobbing, Saturn raised her Glaive and purple power began to taint the air around them._

_"Good luck getting this rebuilt, Serenity. _I_ sure won't help you. But I won't kill anyone either." The Senshi closed her eyes, and suddenly, everything turned deep violet._

_The next second, Endymion was staring out at Crystal Tokyo, standing on dirt._

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

"Oh, shimatta!" the King cursed to himself as he sat up on his futon, drenched in a cold sweat. "_Why_ won't that dream go away?" Unknowingly, he uttered the exact same words his wife used nearly every night.

The ebony-haired man gazed up at the Moon, grateful for all its inhabitants and it itself had done for him, and glad that he wasn't there right now. Earth might be cold in winter, but it was constantly _freezing_ on the Moon.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

"Kyra!" a man shouted, racing up the gentle slope to the ebony-haired woman just outside her family hut.

"Yes?" she asked, slightly surprised at his disheveled appearance. "What's wrong?"

"San…" he panted. "San's gone… and cut himself… clear to the bone…"

"Where?" Kyra demanded, asking both San's location and where he'd cut himself.

"Down… down by the ash grove," the man gasped. "I think… it's his arm… I just saw a lot… of blood."

With a muttered curse, Kyra glanced into her home as she scooped up her herb bag.

"Mom!" she called. "Will you watch Glaki for me? I've got another one to take care of."

"Sure," a voice came from within. "I don't mind watching my granddaughter for a while longer. Just make sure you're back before dark. I don't want to fix dinner and leave her unattended."

"I'll be back," Kyra responded. "Bye!"

Then she followed the man back to where his companion lay, as fast as their legs could carry them.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

"Prepare to die, trespasser!" a voice rang out in the fog.

"Would you really kill me, Pluto?" a ebony-haired woman mocked.

"No," the Guardian of Time sighed, stepping out of the mists. "But you shouldn't take that tone with me. I'm your foster mother, after all."

"I know," Saturn replied brightly. "Gomen ne. Won't do it again."

"Okay, what trouble have you caused now?" the garnet-eyed woman sighed.

"Why whatever do you mean?"

"Your innocent act is laid on too thick," Pluto drawled. "Out with it."

"Well…" Saturn hesitated, fingering her Glaive nervously. "I came home from my mission, and... foundoutSerenityexiledTitanandblewtheplaceup," she explained very quickly.

"Matte…" Pluto closed her eyes and ran through the sentence again in her head. "Wait," she said again. "You _blew up _the Palace?"

"Just the Royal Chambers," Saturn said quickly, trying to abate her foster-mother's anger. "Not the rest. And I made sure no one got hurt. Some of the servants were confused though, when they were suddenly on the other side of the castle."

Pluto inhaled, held the breath, and _slowly_ exhaled.

"I _still_ can't believe you blew up the Palace. I mean, you _know_ what that thing's made of, do you not?"

"If she let's Titan come back and gives a public apology, I'll put it back up," Saturn muttered sullenly.

"Does Serenity know this?" the other Senshi questioned.

Her daughter shook her head. "I'm not on speaking terms with them anymore."

"Well, at least go talk to Ani," Pluto sighed. "You need to talk to _someone_ about it. And no, that doesn't mean me," she added, recognizing the look in her daughter's eyes.

Grumbling, the Senshi of Ruin turned around and went back to her own Time through the Gate.

Sailor Pluto gave a slight smile as her daughter vanished.

"Everything will work out for the best; don't worry about that, daughter. Just have patience…"

**AN:** Well, chappie two is done. I've got most of the story outlined on notecards, so this should go pretty fast. Tell me what you think? Oh, by the way 'Ani' is supposed to be pronouced 'AAH-ni.' Got it? Good. The questions from the last chapter also apply to this chapter. Please give me info about Kousagi.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN:** I know I took forever… I'm SORRY! Well, six months isn't _quite_ forever, but still… I intend to be updating more regularly (hopefully) and frequently now that I have found my lost plot and storyline. Also, you might want to read _Guardians of the Solar Sailor Senshi_ and _The Guardians' Return_ before you read this story as we get deeper in, simply so you know my characters.

**Disclaimer:** Guardians, Kyra, Ani, Glaki, Tahi, San, Thomas, and all other miscellaneous characters are mine. Nothing and no one else. Suing is useless.

**Chapter Three**

Kyra sighed as she saw a familiar redhead rushing up the hill towards her. Quickly stepping out of her garden and onto the path so he wouldn't end up crushing her plants in an effort to get to her, she called, "What's wrong _this_ time, San?"

Gasping, the man stopped in front of her, bent over and panting. "Thomas is sick. He's burning up and keeps throwing up anything we give him. _Anything_!"

"How long?" the ebony-haired woman demanded. There were a number of things the man could be suffering from, but his treatment could depend on how long it had been since the symptoms had first occurred.

"He started complaining of a stomachache three days ago, but we were planting, so we figured he just didn't feel like working. We made him work, but he kept it up, so he stopped a bit before midday. He kept complaining the day after and yesterday. Then, yesterday, he kept saying it was too hot, even though it was a late cold snap. Last night he started throwing up, and we realized something was wrong. But it was so dark, and the wolves have been out lately, so we decided to wait until morning to get you."

"You wait until _late afternoon_?" San backed away, seeing the healer's face begin to turn red as she seethed. "You _idiot_! What were you _thinking_? No, scratch that! You _weren't_ thinking!"

Still cursing him, she went inside for her bag and emerged a moment later, only slightly calmer.

"Let's go," she sighed, visibly suppressing her anger towards him. "But if he's _really_ ill, I blame _you_, understand?"

"Yes, ma'am," he replied instantly. It had been over a decade since the woman before him had given up killing, but on the rare, absolutely terrifying occasions that she lost her temper, he was reminded of how lethal she had been as an assassin. His relief when he'd first heard that she'd given up the profession also returned to him full-force each time he remembered her past.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she demanded, snapping him out of his thoughts as she began dragging him down the hill. "I assume Thomas is in your house?"

"What?" he asked, momentarily startled. At her glare, he quickly answered, "Yeah, Thomas is at my place. And I was just remembering some stuff about you."

"Not exactly restful," she murmured, preoccupied with thoughts of her patient. San and his wife had produced five, healthy, _loud_ children in the seven years since Kyra had arrived. "What stuff?"

"Um…Er…It was…" he stalled, fearing her reaction, but knowing she would keep at him until she heard the truth. "About how glad I am you gave up your old job," he finally admitted as they passed beneath an extremely old and tall oak tree.

"You make it sound like I enjoyed the thing. You know the Master—thank God he's finally dead and rotting—chose it for me. I didn't have a choice in the matter. Mom taught me this, and I'm better at it. Except when people like _you_ decide not to _tell_ me there's health problems."

"I said I was sorry," he grumbled as they entered his wooden house.

"Not before this," the healer retorted. Raising her voice over the din of the children, she shouted, "Kids! Out! Now!"

The five children of San, three of the neighbors, and Glaki all obediently stopped yelling, playing, and fighting and headed for the door.

"Not you," Kyra said, stopping her six-year-old daughter with a hand. "_You_ are going to help me."

"What if I'm not good enough?" whimpered Glaki, following her mother into the sickroom.

"You'll do fine," her mother assured her. "Even if you _do_ make a mistake, that's why I'm here, remember?"

"Okay," the little girl agreed, reassured that her mother could fix San and any mess-ups she, as an inexperienced six-year-old, would make.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

Queen Serenity of the Moon and Earth sighed in relief and relaxed against her bedchamber door. _Finally_, Saturn had left Crystal Tokyo again. The woman had been back for six months and had made the most of every minute to discreetly somehow upset or torment her Queen and King. To the little, pink-haired Princess, however, she always showed the gentle, smiling face she had shown to no one else in nearly eight years, since she left the year before her sister's exile.

_That's gonna haunt me until I die, isn't it?_ she asked herself tiredly. Nearly every night, the blonde suffered from some form of nightmare involving Titan. Actually, _anything_ involving Titan, day or night, turned into a nightmare. There were still so many mixed feelings about the trial… _Not that it was much of one anyway,_ Serenity admitted to herself. _Saturn's right about that much, even if I'll never tell her._ The Queen had also gained a sense of pride that was, at times, overbearing. Whenever her King realized it had gotten to such a point, he always took her down a peg or twelve.

Glancing at the desk through an open door to her adjoining, personal office, the odango-haired Queen suppressed a sigh. The papers upon the desk were piled high and she found her feet taking her closer of their own accord. It was time to go back to work.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

Saturn was currently in another solar system, grumbling to herself as her wings, grown for the purpose of flying, beat a steady pattern. Though there was no air thermals in space, the wings gave her the pushes she needed to do anything but float aimlessly.

It was so aggravating not to be able to feel her sister's presence, to not know where she was or how she was doing. Even during the testing period before Titan could become a Guardian in the eyes of everyone else and the girl had been in another solar system altogether, Saturn had always been able to feel her presence. To not be able to now, to not have noticed that she no longer felt it until she returned to Earth from that scouting mission to discover that Titan was gone… It was beyond horrible.

"Titan, where _are_ you?" she sighed to herself as a blue-black planet loomed larger in her vision.

Maison.

That was where Tahi and Kyra lived.

_Maybe I'll go visit them,_ the Warrior of Destruction thought to herself. _It's been four years and Tahi's always been able to get my and Titan's minds off whatever happens to be bothering us. Maybe she or Kyra will know where my twin went. And I can always help with the kid._ A rare grin lit her face as she remembered the little toddler that had been crawling around upon her last visit. _Now what was her name, again…?_

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

Warm arms suddenly surrounded her, distracting her from her work and the papers in front of her.

"We missed you at dinner," a soft, masculine voice whispered against her ear, still raising goosebumps all over her, even after fifteen years of marriage. "I told them you were sick, seeing as how I had to put you in bed earlier. I wasn't expecting to find you at your desk in this freezing room. Sailor Mercury, Senshi of Ice, or not, I don't see how you can stand it in here for such long periods as you spend in here. Come back to our warm bed, Amiko."

"As you wish, my darling husband, Zoisite," Mercury smiled up at him, his worry proving itself through his use of his pet name for her and eyes, though not through his voice. "But really, as the Senshi of Ice I have to be able to stand long periods of extreme cold, else I am useless as a Senshi. My powers originate from ice and I use ice more than I do liquid water. Besides, the cold no longer bothers me."

"Oh? And at what point did it?" the man asked as he scooped up his petite, blue-haired wife and began carrying her towards the door and down the hall to their chambers, bridal-style.

"Before Luna gave me the pen," she answered tiredly, her long day of her hands, minds, and eyes doing paperwork and her immune system fighting off illness catching up with her. "I still wouldn't go out in snow without layering up, though. I have no desire to tempt fate. If only Marina would _explain_ to me how she can go out there with so little and not even get goosebumps from the cold!"

"Well, I'll just have to make sure she doesn't tell you," her husband informed her sternly as he gently lay her down on the bed. "I don't want you doing anything that could make you sick."

"But—" she protested before he placed a finger to her lips.

"Enough. If you don't want to sleep in your clothes, civilian style though they are, I suggest you go get into those nice, warm, blue, _flannel_ pajamas I got you for your birthday last month," he ordered.

Laughing, her husband having momentarily chased her exhaustion away, Mercury reached for the thick nightclothes her husband held out in front of her.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

"Have you really been working all this time?"

"What do you mean?" Serenity asked, looking up at her husband as he kissed her on the forehead, right atop her crescent moon mark.

"It's nearly nine at night, my dearest," Endymion explained. "I haven't seen you since three, when we saw Saturn off. Stupid etiquette."

The odango-haired woman chuckled, knowing just how much her husband hating having to pretend and give the world a happy face and pretend that everything was fine concerning the Senshi of Death, even though they believed it could not truly get any worse. "Yes, I have been. Well, I got myself a snack first and just sort of sat around daydreaming for a few minutes, but other than that, I've been in here. Oh, and I was thinking that we need to try and open up some sort of relationship with Maison. That's the old Yami homeworld and most of them went back there after our battle and the cleansings."

"You've gotten more done than I have all day," the King observed, noting the neat piles, most of the paperwork done and sitting in baskets to be distributed to wherever they were supposed to go next. He purposely ignored the comment about Maison. The people there were such a headache, even when Ani, the highest Yami in their court, was around to give explanations for language translations and lower the culture and language barriers.

"Really?" she asked, arching a golden brow at him.

"Really," he answered, surprised at how defensive and childlike he sounded.

"Looks like I'm not the only one ready for bed," she laughed, getting up and tugging him towards their bedroom.

He stuck his tongue out at her, but followed obediently. Hey, if he was going to act like a child, why not go all the way?

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

**AN:** Sorry I took so long. But, as an apology, this chapter is longer than the other two and actually has more relevant information. Last chapter was mostly flashbacks so you knew what was going on, and it and the first were just essentially opening the stage for the story to truly begin.

**POLL / QUESTION SECTION:**

1) Who has any ideas on what will happen next?

2) Who wants to guess where Titan's hiding from her sister?

3) Is the woman (Titan) even hiding?


	4. Chapter 4

**AN:** See? I UPDATED! Ain't I WONDERFUL?

**Disclaimer:** Guardians, Kyra, Ani, Glaki, Tahi, San, his wife, Thomas, and all other miscellaneous characters are mine. Nothing and no one else. Suing is useless.

**Chapter Four**

Sailor Saturn sighed in relief as she landed upon the planet Maison. Yes, she was still far from Tahi and Kyra's house—not to mention halfway up a mountain—but she was on the planet, somewhat near her destination, and in one piece. With all the turbulence she'd met as she'd come closer and closer to the surface, the wings had become a nuisance. However, she had kept them, despite the fact that they kept pulling her off course, due to the aggravating truth that without them, she would fall like a rock and splatter all over the ground when she landed. Senshi of Rebirth or not, she did not want to test her abilities at recreating _herself_. She was lucky that she had landed without doing much damage to her body in any case, only ending up with a pair of scraped knees, which were already healing.

Looking down the mountainside, the Dosei Senshi sighed. Due to something about the planet's core, teleportation upon the planet's surface was impossible… which meant she would have to _walk_ all the way to the house. "Damn," she muttered. "That's still a three or four hour walk." Thankfully, there was still a good amount of light left. Maybe she _wouldn't_ arrive in the dark.

With a groan of annoyance—and the knowledge of the future pain in her feet—Sailor Saturn began carefully picking her way down the side of the mountain.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

Phobos and Deimos, the twins so often called the 'fire birds' by their friends, had long since left the palace of Crystal Tokyo behind. Feeling cloistered—and missing their wings—the two raven-haired women had shifted their shapes to once again become crows. As such, they returned to where they had spent so much of their time on Earth—the Shinto Shrine where their mistress had been reared.

Quickly finding the tree where they had watched Raye for so many years, the two perched there and changed back to human, hidden in the thick branches.

"What's going on, Dei?" Phobos asked, her fingers playing with the black star on her red gymnast uniform. "Missing Granpa Hino?"

"Now that you mention it, yes," her blue-clad sister admitted, "but that's not why I picked this spot. I've been having dreams lately… about Titan. Or," Deimos amended, "how she used to be, before she blew up the cities and got herself exiled. Remember how she could calm Saturn down from full-blown rage in an instant and have her laughing the next?"

"Yeah, she could do that, couldn't she?" Phobos laughed. "Oh! D'ya remember how she told Hotaru and Saturn she was engaged?"

Deimos nearly fell out of the tree, she was laughing so hard. "I was glad Hotaru was more in charge than Saturn when that happened. Saturn would've _killed_ him if she'd had the chance."

"But she got over it," Phobos reminded her sister. "Otherwise, Ani wouldn't be alive today, now would he?"

"Nope," came the cheerful answer. "But Saturn might not be either, since Titan's soul was bound to his, and Saturn would have had issues with killing her sister."

"Where do you think she is?" Phobos asked, suddenly serious. "Titan, I mean. And what could make her kill all those people?"

"Wish I knew," Deimos sighed, hopping down from the tree and sneaking into the temple. Ever since the Senshi of Kasei's grandfather had died, roughly two years after Crystal Tokyo had been established, the shrine had been empty, a reminder of the past and had become protected property. Anyone caught trespassing would pay at the hands of the Fire Senshi, after being reported by the nearby neighbors. The fact that the Shrine was atop a large hill made it easier for the neighbors to see people creeping around on the property, which was the reason the twins from Coronis were sneaking their way into their old home.

"Think she'll come back?" queried Phobos hopefully.

"No," Deimos answered flatly and Phobos wilted slightly. Giving her sister a quick smile and rooting through the broom closet for buckets, Deimos elaborated, "Not if she has any sense. You heard the Queen, didn't you? 'If you ever return to this Solar System, unless bound by physical or magical means, the magic that engraved your oaths into your wrists shall kill you.' How much you want to bet Titan's coming back with _that_ awaiting her? She'll die, probably slowly and painfully. No, Phobos, I don't think we'll be seeing her again in this lifetime."

Phobos swore fluently under her breath as she took her bucket to a faucet in the bathroom. Although the kindly old man had kept most things as old-fashioned and original as possible, the bathrooms were completely modern—or at least as modern as they had been twenty years ago. "Think maybe she said something different than what she meant?" the red-clad twin asked hopefully. "I mean, the Crystal _does_ respond to her heart rather than her words. Maybe… she just didn't want Titan back within a certain amount of time, and after that, Titan can come home."

"Or maybe Titan's magic was sealed away," Deimos suggested, following her sister's example and filling her bucket with clean water and fetching old rags for cleaning. "That would explain why we can't reach her anymore."

"We've _never_ been able to reach one of the team who'd left the solar system," Phobos reminded her sister, who promptly stuck her tongue out and flicked Phobos with water from her soaking rag.

With a shriek of outrage, Phobos responded in kind and a water fight broke out, and the twins' original intentions of cleaning the Shrine became part of the dust surrounding them.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

Kyra let out a soft groan as she pulled herself out of her magic. Thomas was in such _horrible_ shape. Together, she and Glaki had gotten his fever down, although they hadn't convinced it to break. There were also some problems with his stomach, so he probably had not been able to take much more than water for the last day or so, which actually had an upside to it: he had nothing in his stomach to throw up.

Reaching out a trembling hand toward her daughter, the healer gently shook Glaki's shoulder, calling her name softly.

"Mommy?" the girl asked softly as she opened her eyes, pulling her magic out of the man in front of her. "What's wrong?"

"He still has a fever and a bunch of other problems you haven't learned how to deal with yet," Kyra informed her with a small smile. "Besides, you need to get home before Grandma gets worried. It'll be dark soon."

"Really?" Glaki gasped, her eyes going wide. If it was getting dark, then she had been using her magic for nearly _four hours_.

"Yes, dear," Kyra said softly, ruffling her daughter's hair. "So go tell San and his wife that I'm still working, but you have to go home now. See if one of them will walk you, okay? You're more tired now than you think and you might not be able to make it all the way home on your own."

"It's not that far," Glaki protested. "I can go on my own. I'm not _that_ tired!"

"Glaki," her mother sighed. "The first time I healed someone—and they weren't anywhere near this bad—I barely made it ten steps before I passed out. I'm not going to risk you collapsing on the way home and you being outside, on your own, with the wolves out."

"You're not coming?" the six-year-old asked, confused.

"Sweetie, I still have work to do here," Kyra smiled. "I'll come home in the morning, though, all right?"

The child pouted for a moment, until her mother kissed her, and then she agreed to be walked home and left the room, promising to be good and not make a fuss for San, his wife, or Grandma.

Kyra turned back to the task at hand and sighed. The side effects of dredging up her healing magic in addition to using herbs was beginning to set in. If she was still working in two hours, she wouldn't be able to stand when she finished.

"Thomas, you'd better heal fast if you want to be worth it."

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

The odango-haired Queen of the Earth and Moon was currently wandering the palace halls, unable to sleep due to nightmares. Her husband and King had locked her study and then taken the keys so that she was unable to get in. Due to that, she was unable to paperwork and be even _slightly_ productive.

"Maybe I'll go to the kitchens and get a midnight snack," she murmured to herself before cracking a smile. It had been _years_ since she had last snuck into a kitchen—or anywhere else, for that matter—in the middle of the night. But having nothing else to do, the Queen allowed her feet to lead her to food and away from nightmares of her Court collapsing and worlds turnings against her.

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

Tahi sighed and replaced the cap to the bottle she had opened. It was time to stop the busy work and focus on what was going on. So what exactly was happening?

The sky was quickly turning from dusk to dark and neither Kyra nor Glaki had come home yet. She had a nearly overbearing feeling that some disaster was coming to her home soon and a much vaguer and weaker suspicion that someone would be showing up on her doorstep soon along with the knowledge that Glaki would be home soon. Kyra was not one to push someone past their limits and keeping her away from home all night after working magic would do that, even if the strenuous effort of controlling her powers had not done so. It was one of the advantages to living in a small village that everyone what was happening at everyone else's homes.

Now if only it would be her son, Ani, coming home for the first time since his wife was exiled, everything would be all right…

—°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°——°—

**AN:** Yep, that's it. Fairly short, huh?

**QUESTION / POLL SECTION:**

1) Why do you think Ani won't go visit his mother?

2) Is Thomas going to heal okay or is Kyra going to half-kill himself?

3) What do you think the reaction will be when Saturn shows up?


End file.
